The World Bank has identified fiscal restrictions introduced by Ghana’s Ministry of Finance as a major factor behind delays in executing the Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) Project – a flagship intervention designed to address persistent flooding and strengthen urban resilience in the capital.
In its latest implementation update published in May 2026, the Bank lowered GARID’s implementation rating to Moderately Unsatisfactory, pointing to financing bottlenecks that slowed project delivery despite available funding.
“The implementation of GARID has been significantly constrained by fiscal measures introduced by the Ministry of Finance during 2025.”
The assessment comes amid renewed scrutiny of flood management systems following the June 29 floods that claimed at least 12 lives and again exposed Accra’s vulnerability to recurring flooding.
Backed by $350 million in financing, GARID is intended to improve flood risk management, strengthen solid waste systems and enhance urban resilience across selected metropolitan and municipal assemblies within Greater Accra.
The programme spans drainage infrastructure, urban upgrading, institutional coordination, project delivery and emergency response interventions.
While the World Bank said overall progress toward the project’s development objectives remains broadly on track, implementation at the operational level has lagged expectations.
According to the report, engineering work has largely been completed for approved infrastructure projects with the exception of the Ayidan landfill but execution has been slowed by contractor delays and unresolved decisions around restructuring or terminating underperforming contracts.
The Bank traced much of the implementation challenge to financial restrictions introduced in 2025.
According to the report, the Ministry of Finance imposed limits on project disbursements and temporarily swept GH¢13.8 million from GARID’s designated account, creating liquidity pressures that affected contractor payments and disrupted project timelines.
The Bank warned that while financing remains sufficient to complete the programme, disruptions in fund releases have heightened risks of project delays, cost escalations, contractor claims, procurement pressures and setbacks to resettlement activities.
Government has since moved to address some of the constraints.
“Following the February 2026 implementation support mission, the MoF initiated corrective actions, including the processing a withdrawal application of $10.5 million, the first since November 2023.”
The report added that government subsequently requested a restructuring of expenditure allocations and restored the GH¢13.8 million to the project account in March 2026, although liquidity pressures have not been fully resolved.
